The Peyton Hillis trade rumors were swirling for the past few weeks as the Cleveland Browns running back dealt with issues relating to injuries as well as his contract. When the NFL trade deadline having passed Tuesday afternoon, however, Hillis was not on the list of players being traded.

Browns head coach Pat Shurmur said on Monday that his running back wouldn't be traded so this is probably something Cleveland fans should have saw coming. ESPN's Chris Mortensen suggested Tuesday morning that the Browns might be able to be persuaded, though, leaving a bit of suspense for the 4 p.m. deadline.

In the end, though, Shurmur was right and Hillis remains on the roster -- and the guys over Dawgs By Nature probably aren't disappointed.

It is difficult for a Hillis fan like myself to even think about trading him. But at this point it is starting to seem possible that at some point the Browns and Hillis might part ways. So why not get something for him now when his value is high?

No other teams valued Hillis enough to offer a trade to blow the Browns front office out of the water, apparently. The next step is locking him up to a contract extension before, as our colleagues mentioned, the Browns are left with nothing at all.